


I Won't Bite If You Let Me Be (Tiger Inside)

by TheFunk



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Animal Abuse, Animal Death, Animal Transformation, Bonding, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, Forced Marriage, Hurt/Comfort, Kidnapping, Language Barrier, M/M, Minor Character Death, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Physical Abuse, Slow To Update
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-15
Updated: 2020-12-23
Packaged: 2021-03-10 03:35:06
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,186
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27807667
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheFunk/pseuds/TheFunk
Summary: Soonyoung is a human who has been turned into a tiger thanks to a curse, currently languishing in the menagerie of a rich asshole. Junhui is the newest addition to the rich asshole's household - a reluctant marriage piece, who spends hours in the menagerie as a means of escape from his terrible situation. The sorry pair wind up bonding and becoming close.
Relationships: Kwon Soonyoung | Hoshi/Wen Jun Hui | Jun
Comments: 12
Kudos: 21
Collections: SVTOXIC FEST 2020





	1. A Dangerous Exchange

**Author's Note:**

> The title comes from Tiger Inside by SuperM.

Soonyoung let his eyes flick towards the clock on the wall at the back of the convenience store. 1:54 a.m. He only had six minutes until his shift was over and he could finally leave and go home. He hated working the night shift, but it always paid better than the day shift. The door opened with a ring of the bell and Soonyoung waved at the boy who walked in the door. Jihoon smiled at him and went to the refrigerated section. He came back with a bottle of Coke and some cash. Soonyoung rang him up and made his change while the younger boy went to the back to punch in. Jihoon came back just as Soonyoung finished packing his tote bag.

“You got any plans for today?” Jihoon asked.

“Ugh, yeah. Got a full day coming up. My dad has a doctor’s appointment, I’ve gotta get groceries, and I have to teach a dance lesson to that kid. Plus, Wonwoo called out so I’m gonna cover his shift this afternoon,” Soonyoung said. 

“Jesus, Soon. You gonna sleep at any time? Why are you still doing dance lessons? And I can take Wonwoo’s shift, you need to start taking care of yourself,” Jihoon admonished him.

Soonyoung pulled the tote onto his shoulder, “That kid’s family is rich and pays really well and I need the money. Plus, I know you and Seungcheol are having your anniversary dinner tonight, I’m not gonna make you miss that to take Wonwoo’s shift, besides, I like picking up extra shifts, it’s not a problem.”

Jihoon put his change in his pocket and cracked open his soda, “Alright just, take care of yourself man.”

“I always do,” Soonyoung said.

He left for the breakroom and punched out, the loud sound echoing through the quiet of the convenience store. He pulled his hoodie over his head and finally was able to leave. He waved to Jihoon on the way out and left the building with the sharp clang of the bell following after him. The air outside was chilly and Soonyoung was glad he had remembered to bring his hoodie. The one time he had forgotten he thought that he was going to die of hypothermia. He didn’t, of course. But it sure did feel like he could.

There wasn’t a soul around in the pitch-black night, and Soonyoung wondered again for the thousandth time why their convenience store was open 24 hours. The busses didn’t even run this late and the people knew better than to walk around alone so late at night. This wasn’t the best of neighborhoods in South Korea after all. His only company was the streetlights that lit his way home and the stray cats that would occasionally dart across his path. The only person he knew that had been able to pet them was Wonwoo, but that didn’t stop Soonyoung from trying every time he saw one.

He rummaged in his bag and pulled out his water bottle. The water inside it was warm now, but his friend Minghao had once told him that warm water was healthier anyway, so he tried not to grimace as he took a sip. The taste of warm water was something he still didn’t like, his mother had always said that cold water tasted the best, and he had been inclined to agree with her. He slipped his water bottle back into his tote bag, and continued to walk down the sidewalk.

The good thing about the convenience store Soonyoung worked at, was that it wasn’t all that far from his home. It was a couple of miles, sure, but it was better than it could be, especially with the fact that the busses weren’t running this late. He couldn’t afford to call for a taxi, so he had to walk the long way home. It kept him fit though, so he didn’t mind. He would tell his dad that every time he asked if the walk was bad. It wasn’t. It was fine. It wasn’t that far. He was safe. The more he told himself this, the more he allowed himself to believe it.

He was only a few hundred feet from his home now. It was a shitty little apartment building that was almost falling down it was so old. There was water damage that discolored the walls and the ceilings and he knew when he got inside the groos smell would fill his nose before he could light a candle. But he also knew that his dad would be inside, sound asleep in his bed, and safe. 

Soonyoung smiled when he finally got to the front of his building. His legs were tired and he wanted nothing more than to lie down and sleep for hours on end. He opened the door to the lobby and walked inside, grimacing as the blinding fluorescent lights blinked in and out. They didn’t have a doorman or even need a key card to get into the building, but that could be nice when you didn’t want anyone to bother you after a hard day, or your hands were full and you couldn’t do anything but push the door in with your butt.

He began to walk up the stairs (the elevator had been broken for years, and even before it had broken, Soonyoung hadn’t trusted it) and groaned as his legs ached with every step. A bell chimed to signal that someone else had entered the building. And then a few more times to show that many people had entered. He frowned. Usually, he was the only one that got home at this time. Anyone else would be Mr. Park after working overtime, but he was just one person. Soonyoung pulled his tote bag higher on his shoulder and began to walk a little quicker.

“Hey boy, you got my money,” a gruff voice called out behind him.

Soonyoung froze. There was no one else this man could be talking to but him. Sure, he had heard multiple people walking in, but tough guys asking about money? They were the kind of people that brought friends with them. His heart began to race.

Soonyoung turned around with his most charming smile, “I’m sorry, I’m not sure what you’re talking about.”

The man had a shaved head and a jagged scar running down the side of his face, which looked to be a permanent sneer, “Don’t play dumb with me boy. Kwon Soonbeom owes the boss a lot of money. You’ve gotten a lot of leeway, and now it’s time to pay up.”

Soonyoung swallowed harshly. This man knew his father’s name. This man was looking for his father. This man... he was not going to be nice if he found out that Soonyoung did not have his money. Soonyoung did not have his money.

“Sorry sir, I’m not sure who that is,” Soonyoung said. He began to step up the stairs, slowly, so as not to show the man his fear. 

The man grinned at him, a malicious grin stretching across his face, “Get him boys.”

The men raced up the stairs and Soonyoung began to run as well. They thundered up the stairs and he threw his tote bag at them, trying to slow them down. A hand grabbed his ankle and he lost his footing. He fell forward, his chin smashing against the concrete stair. The air left his lungs and he gasped for breath. Warm liquid dripped down the skin of his throat, and he knew he was bleeding. He kicked his legs but the grip on his ankle was too tight and he couldn’t rip it free. His free foot connected with something and he could hear a sickening crack and he knew he had broken a nose. The grip on his ankle loosened and he took to his feet and he began to run again.

His feet pounded the staircase as he ran and he could hear heavy steps behind him so he tried to move faster, but his body was so tired he couldn’t. He reached the last stair and ran down the hallway. Just a few more feet and he would be in his apartment, safe, with no men chasing him and trying to hurt him.

He was gasping as he ran, his chin throbbed constantly. He made it to his door and his fingers as he punched in the code. 1-0-1-0. The light glowed green and his door clicked open. He had just taken a step inside when strong arms wrapped around his stomach and lifted him into the air. He kicked at the air but he couldn’t get purchase on anything. He clawed at the man but his short nails did hardly any damage on his long-sleeved arms.

The man carried him into his apartment and the rest of the men followed. They threw him onto the ground and shut the door behind him. He got to his feet, his chest heaving. One of the men stood guard in front of the door. Soonyoung turned to check behind him, and his father was struggling awake. Soonyoung moved to shift in front of him.

“What do you want from us? Leave us alone,” Soonyoung cried.

One of the men swaggered towards him, hands on his hips, “Daddy there owes the boss a ton of money, and if we don’t get it back, there’s going to be consequences.”

“We don’t have any money for you. We don’t have any money,” Soonyoug cried.

The man shrugged, “Then I guess we’re going to have to take action.”

“What are you going to do to us?” Soonyoung whimpered.

“Well, it seems dear old dad needs some motivation to get us that cash,” the man snapped his fingers, and the other men moved into action.

One of them pulled rope out of his duffle bag and advanced on Soonyoung. He backed up but another caught him, and they began to tie him up. He kicked and writhed but they managed to tie him up. He screamed and cried and his father finally awoke in his bed.

“Wha- what are you doing? Who are you, what are you doing to my son!” Soonyoung’s father yelled.

His father tried to get out of bed and his legs collapsed under him. His father crawled towards him and Soonyoung thrashed to try and reach him.

“We work for Mr. Kang,” the man said, “and you haven’t paid. So we’ve decided that it’s time to give you a little motivation. Once you give us our money, you can have your son back.”

Soonyoung sobbed. If they got him, he would never get back home. His father didn’t work. He was sick, and had been for a long time. The sickness had turned to a need for surgery, and the surgery, which had led to more injury and illness when it was done wrong. Soonyoung was the only one he made any money.

“Please, I can’t work, he makes all the money. Please, take me instead. Don’t take my boy!” his father cried.

The man pinched the bridge of his nose, “So, you can’t make any money, and the boss isn’t gonna get paid?”

His father trembled, “He can make your money, take me instead!”

The man sighed and pulled a gun from his waistband, “I really wish you wouldn’t have said that.”

The man cocked back the gun, and before Soonyoung could breathe, the man shot his father in the head. Blood sprayed all over Soonyoung’s face and he screamed. His voice was hoarse and his body was on fire. He writhed and screamed but the men held him tight. A bag was thrown over his head and something heavy hit him over the head. He became lightheaded and he passed out.

#

Soonyoung’s body ached. He was warm all over and his jaw thrummed with pain. His eyes creaked open and all he saw around him was dirt and trees... and bars. Large iron bars. He was in a cage. He tried to sit up but his body didn’t react the way he thought it should. He looked down at his hands and they were... paws. They were large and covered in orange and black fur, and they were paws. He stood on his four legs ( _ his four legs _ ) and looked around. He was in a large building and there were other cages all around him. There was an animal in each and Soonyoung made eye contact with a small panther. Its eyes looked sad and in their glossy reflection, he could see himself. 

A tiger.

His vision went black, and he collapsed onto the dirt below him.


	2. Where the Wild Things Are

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sooyoung wakes up and meets the man who brought him there, and discovers just what is in store for him.

When Soonyoung came to, he could feel dirt underneath his body. Soonyoung stood on shaky limbs. His back ached as he held himself in a position he never had in his entire life. His tail swung and he had no idea how it happened. It happened again, and Soonyoung forced himself to find what muscles pushed and pulled as the long appendage swished behind him. When he finally pinpointed it, he shook his tail again.

He shook his head. This couldn’t be real. There was no way he should have awoken as a tiger. There’s no way he was kidnapped by some thugs over debts he had no control over. There’s no way his father was…

He collapsed onto his stomach and let out pitiful sobs. He clenched his eyes shut. This had to be some sort of horrifying nightmare. He tried to wipe the tears from his face, but his hands were still paws and they batted clumsily at his fur-covered face.

How could this be real? How had he been turned into a tiger and why had his father been killed? How long would it take before people found out he was missing? It shouldn’t take too long. Soonyoung prided himself in his consistency, his dependability. The only time he had missed a dance lesson with Seungkwan, he had called his mother beforehand. Surely when he didn’t show, they would know something was wrong. And if they didn’t, his boss would know the second he didn’t show up for his shift. His friends, his coworkers, they would know he was in trouble, right? Jihoon knows where he lives, knows the passcode to his apartment. Surely when he found out he hadn’t shown up to work he would go to his house and see… everything. There was no way to hide that he was missing and something horrible had happened to him.

Soonyoung looked up to the sound of footsteps approaching. The animals in the other cages ran to the backs of their habitats, one small fox cowering behind a bush, but Soonyoung couldn’t force himself to move. His body was frozen stiff. A tall woman and an even taller man (but everything looked tall now, he was so much shorter than he used to be) were walking towards him. The man had on an expensive-looking suit, his dark hair slicked back, and a smile that made Soonyoung’s stomach roll on his face. The woman looked older, her skin wrinkled and pale, her steps slow and labored as she followed the man, but her face held a smirk that sent a shiver down his spine and tail. Soonyoung growled low in his throat and the man grinned at him as they stopped in front of his cage, the man resting his hands on the bars.

“Look at you, my little pet, growling as if you think that will help you. You don’t scare me little tiger,” the man said.

Soonyoung growled and gnashed at the man’s hands who pulled them away at the last second. He chuckled at Soonyoung and the sound grated at Soonyoung’s ears.

“Poor little tiger, is it hard not being a human anymore? My witch did good work on you, didn’t she? It’s a shame your father couldn’t afford his debts, otherwise you’d still be a happy little boy at your filthy convenience store,” the man grinned.

Soonyoung glanced at the woman, no, witch. Her dead eyes stared down at him. She had done this to him. This was his punishment for being in debt? Wouldn’t this man rather he pay back his debt than just... be an animal in a cage? He didn’t even know he had a debt, now that he knew he could work on paying it back. He tried to speak but he couldn’t, the words choking in his throat and coming out as a weak whine.

Soonyoung shook his head and let a roar build through him. He roared at the man and lunged at the bars. The man didn’t have his hands near the bars anymore but he did flinch away and a swell of satisfaction grew within him.

The man pulled a black stick from his pocket and extended it, and before Soonyoung could recognize it as a baton, the man had slammed it down on Soonyoung’s head. His head thrummed and he yowled. He stumbled back away from the bars and collapsed onto his stomach. His eyes swam and the man’s face became blurry. His ears began to ring as the man laughed at him. He looked up and the Witch was frowning down at him and her face swam as tears pooled in his eyes. He blinked his eyes and cowered out from her gaze.

The man cackled, “Not so fierce now!”

Soonyoung backed away from the bars and the man leaned down to stare into Soonyoung’s eyes. His slimy grin was back on his face.

“You should start being a little nicer to me, we’re going to be seeing a lot of each other. You’re my pet now. You’re going to live here until you die,” the man whispered to him.

The man stood up with a grin and kicked the bars near Soonyoung and laughed as he flinched backwards. The man and the Witch walked away from him, and the man ran the baton along all of the other cages, laughing as the other animals cowered away from him. A small otter scurried away and jumped into a large bucket of water. A hyena cowered behind a large rock and a wolf next to him whimpered and crawled towards Soonyoung’s cage. Soonyoung wanted to comfort it but he didn’t know how, he couldn’t get his body to move. The footsteps faded away and the man and the Witch walked out the door. He could hear what sounded like mechanical whirring and high-pitched beeping sounds as the door locked behind them.

His body sagged against the ground and he held his paws against his head. He could already feel a warm bump growing on the top of his head. The wolf next to him nuzzled at the bars in between them and Soonyoung looked into its eyes. The eyes looked... haggard, tired, scared. How long had this little wolf been here to look this way? How long would Soonyoung be here until he began to look the same?

Was he going to be here forever?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heyyy.... I'm back :) It took a while but here's chapter two, hope you enjoyed it!

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading this! I hope you enjoyed it! I'm going to try and keep this on an update schedule that I can keep up with. Let me know how you felt about it!


End file.
